Multivoltage motor driven tool



April 15, 1941. J. A. HANLEY 2,238,695

MULTIVOLTAGE MOTOR DRIVEN TOOL Filed Jan. 11, 1940 +-2 I J4 Te 26 c 2729I I INVENTOR Patented Apr. 15, 1941 MULTIVOLTAGE MOTOR DRIVEN TOOL JohnA. Hanley, Noroton, Conn., assignor to Gillette Safety Razor Company,Boston, Mass, a corporation of Delaware App c n an ry 11, 1940, SerialNo. 313,321

18 Claims.

The present invention relates to electrically driven tools orimplements, primarily to electric shavers.

Among the objects of the invention are to provide an apparatus of theabove type, which may be used alternatively on any of a multiplicity ofcommon circuits illustratively on the usual 110 volt circuit in thehome; on the 32 volt circuit in Pullman cars on the 12 volt circuit onboats and the six volt circuit on automobiles.

Another object is to provide a unit of the above type, which shalloperate with substantially equal efllciency at any of a variety ofvoltages in common use, and which shall be relatively inexpensive inconstruction and the setting of which shall require no adjustment of themotor itself but is reliably effected as an incident to plugging theconnector cord set into the tool handle.

In the accompanying drawing in which are shownone or more of variouspossible embodiments of the several features of the invention.

Fig. 1 is an end view of the shaving unit,

Fig. 2 is a sectional View taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged side elevation showing the plug in its coactionwith the rear of the' shaver,

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the plug. Fig. 6 is an end view of theplug,

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line I-l of Fig. 6,

Fig. 8 is a circuit diagram indicating the electrical connection withinthe handle casing,

Fig. 9 is an end view of another embodiment of shaver,

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary sectional view of the embodiment of Fig. 9,

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary view of the cord set showing the femaleconnector plug for high voltage connection in the embodiment of Figs. 9and 10, and

Fig. 12 is a view similar to Fig. low voltage connection. v 7

Referring now to the drawing, there is shown an electric shaving unit,the general construction of which is not claimed herein and need,therefore, be but briefly described. It comprises es- 11 showing thesentially an insulating casing III which serves as a handle, at theforward end of which is removably mounted a shearing head including aninner movable blade II and an outer fixed blade l2. Within the casing ismounted an electric motor by which the movable blade is reciprocated.The field of the motor illustratively comprises a U-shaped laminatedstructure desirably with diverging legs l3 and H upon which are mountedthe field coils C.

The armature comprises a stack of laminations IS with serrations IE todetermine the armature poles. The armature is mounted on a shaft l'ljournalled in bearing plates l8 and has a cam ill at one end foroperating the levers which carry the circuit breaker points 2| at theends thereof, said points being connected in series with the respectivefield coils C. At the other end, the shaft has the eccentric 22 for theoperating lever 23, pivoted at 24 near the forward end of the casing,from which the forward end of the lever extends for coaction with themovable blade ll of the shearing head. The starting wheel 25 protrudesfrom the side of the casing and coacts with a continuous fiber disk 25'included in the stack of laminations l5 that make up the armaturestructure.

The general features of the motor as thus far described, are more fullyset forth and claimed in my prior Patent No. 2,078,896, granted April27, 1937. a

The motor according to the present invention is of the multiple voltagetype so that it can be operated with substantially the sameeffectiveness on any of a plurality, illustratively any of the fourvoltages set forth that are in more or less common commercial use. I

A preferred circuit arrangement for the field coils is showndiagrammatically in Fig. 8. Coils 26 suitable for the six volt circuitare connected across the terminals so marked. Coils 21 are connected inseries therewith at 28 and between terminals marked l2. Similarly coils29 are connected at 30 in series with coils 21 and 26, the saidthreesets of coils operating conjointly and in series for'the 32 voltcircuit being connected across terminals marked 32 and finally coils 35are connected in series at 3| with the other three sets of coils, sothat all four sets of coils operating in-series will be utilized foroperation at volts by connection across terminals marked H0. Byconnection 36 the terminals 6,

I2, 32 and lit are directly joined at one side,

the companion members of the terminal pairs 6, i2, :2 and m beingdistinct. Thus one of the terminal elements of each pair thereof isconnected to the end of the corresponding set of field coils and thecompanion elements of the several pairs of terminals are directlyconnected together and in turn connected to the otherwise unconnectedend of the series connected field coils. The respective field coils 26,21, 29 and 35 are of such resistance that the wattage consumption of themotor is substantially the same regardless on which voltage it isoperating and the curre nt consumption will vary inversely with thevoltage as will be readily understood. The

' circuit breaker 2| is diagrammatically shown in the common leg 36 ofthe circuit, condenser 2| being shown bridging the same.

According to the invention, the terminal pairs of the respective fieldcoils are pairs of prongs P which extend longitudinally of the casingand are mounted on an insulating disk 37 at the rear end of said casing.These prongs do not extend beyond the rear end of the casing but arelodged in a socket 38 molded as part of the casing and preferably with aregular polygonal wall 39, of as pair of hollow contact sleeves 42 indiametrically opposed relation, which contacts are encompassed'by thepolygonal periphery 43 of the plug, which isof dimensions to fit snuglyin the polygonal socket 538 of the shaving unit for quickdetachableconnection with any selected pair of prongs P. The remaining prongs Pthat are not in circuit are accommodated in corresponding wells 33 inthe plug 4|. The respective sides of the plug have markings 44 thereonindicating the respective voltages of use and selectively exposedthrough a notch 45 near one end of the casing in when the plug 4| ispushed home. Thus, the notch will expose visibly the particular voltagefor-which the plug has been set, each marking corresponding to themating of the plug contacts 42 with the corresponding pair of prongs Pin the handle casing. The user, therefore, by introducing the contactplug with the appropriate voltage indication exposed, can use one andthe same shaving device on any of the several voltages for which thefield of the motor is wound, illustratively, six volts for operationfrom the battery of an automobile, 12 volts for that of a motor boat, 32volts in a Pullman car and 110 volts in the ordinary domestic lightingcircuit.

Obviously the motor could be designed for use on various other voltagesas for instance those used in different foreign countries, such as 50,150. 200, 230 and 250 volts.

Though illustratively shown applied to a universal motor operableinterchangeably on direct or on alternating current of any frequency,the invention manifestly is applicablealso to devices equipped withmotors specialized respectively for direct or for alternating currentuse.

Manifestly'the invention is useful for tools other than shavers, suchfor instance as for massaging apparatus of various types.

In the embodiment of Figs. 9 to 12, there is shown a specific embodimentof an electrically operated tool, illustratively a shaver, in whichmultivoltage motor terminals are so constructed I and arranged that theapplication of correct voltage for each circuit is inherentlv assuredeven in the absence of a voltage marking.

The unit illustratively shown. is useful either spacing corresponding tothose of prongs P.

on the usual house circuit ordinarily of volts or alternatively on thebattery circuit of an automobile, ordinarily of 6 volts. motorstructure, generally like that in the embodiment shown in Fig.2, hasonly two sets of field coils 5|] and 5| on its field pole legs 52. Coils5| serve for a 6 volt circuit and coils 5|), or desirably the two coils50, 5| in series are for 110 volt use. The terminals of the high voltfield connection appear in the form of prongs P in the rear end of thecasing. These prongs are desirably of dimensions and spacingconventional in electric shavers so that there may be plugged thereintothe conventional female plug 53 commonly used I on electric shavers.

The terminals for the low voltage or 6 volt coil 7 The cord .set usedfor operatingthe motor at low voltage is desirably of relatively heavywire 55 to avoid excessive voltage drop therein which would be involvedin the use of a' conventional cord, and has a female plug 51 withsockets of size and As a consequence it will be impossible to apply thehigh voltage to the low voltage coil or conversely the low voltage tothe high voltage coil or coils.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and'manyapparently widely different embodiments of this invention could bemade without departing from the scope .of the claims, it is intendedthat all matter contained in the above description or shown in theaccompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in alimiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. An electrically operated tool comprising a handle casing, a multivoltmotor therein, a plu- 'rality of pairs of terminals accessible at oneend of the casing for selective connection for desired voltage, acoacting plug having a quick-detachable connection with said casing andincluding a pair of contacts adapted to mate with any of the pairs ofcontacts on the casing for operation on selected voltage.

2. An electrically operated tool suitable'for use alternatively at anyof a plurality'of difierent voltages. said tool having an associatedelectric motor with a plurality of pairs of terminals, each pair for adistinct voltage, a socketin the tool for said terminals, and an inletplug having a pair of contacts for selective quick-detachable connectionof said plug for operation of the motor at selected voltage.

3. An electrically operated tool suitable for use alternatively at anyof a plurality of voltages, said tool having an associated electricmotorwith a plurality of pairs of terminals, each pair for a distinctvoltage, a socket for s'aid'terminals, a corresponding quick-detachableinlet plug, a pair of contacts in the plug for selective connection ofsaid plug to any of said pairs of contacts in the socket. and indicatingmeans visually showing the voltage for which the plug is, connected ineach setting thereof. 4. An electric shaver including a handle cas- To.that end the nection in accordance with the voltage of the circuit fromwhich the instrument is to be operated, said casing having a socket atone end thereof with a plurality of pairs of contact prongs thereincorresponding to the several voltages, and a coacting quick-detachablefemale contact plug having a pair of contact sleeves adapted selectivelyto be mated with any pair of said contact prongs, depending on thevoltage of the circult.

5. An electric shaving implement, comprising a casing, a multivoltageelectric motor therein, a plurality of pairs of. contact prongs at therear end of the casing, each pair of contact prongs serving as terminalsfor a distinct voltage of operation, a socket wall protecting saidprongs and having a polygonal contour, a plug having a correspondingpolygonal contour and adapted to be set in any of a plurality ofselected positions with respect to said wall, said plug having a pair ofcontact sleeves for establishing circuit to any selected pair of prongs,depending upon the setting of the plug in the socket.

6. A multivolt electric shaver comprising a handle casing having amultivolt motor therein, said motor having a plurality of pairs ofterminal prongs protruding from one end of the casing, each pair of saidprongs serving as terminals for a distinct voltage of operation, aregular polygonal wall encompassing said prongs, a polygonal female plugto mate with said socket, and having a pair of contact sleeves to beselectively telescoped over any of the pairs of prongs for selectivevoltage setting, one of the'sides of said polygonal wall having a windowopening, said polygonal plug having voltage markings on the sidesthereof selectively exposed through the said window opening.

7. An electric shaver comprising a handle casing having a motor therein,including a field with apluralityoffleldwinding cils,a plurality ofpairs of contact prongs connected to the respective,

coils and extending longitudinally of the handle casing and exposed atthe rear end thereof, each pair of prongs serving as terminals foradistinct voltage of operation, said casing presenting a socket shellencompassing said prongs and formed as a regular polygon with one sidefor each prong, the casing being cut away at the lower end of one sideof the polygonal wall and a female plug having a pair of contact shellsadapted to be telescoped over any pair of diametrically opposed prongsonthe casing, said plug having a regular polygonal form to fit-saidpolygonal wall, each side of said plug having a voltage marking to beexposed through the notch in the casing when the plug is brought homeand designating the voltage for which the motor has been connected.

8. An electricallydriven tool having a handle and an electric motorenclosed therein and suitable for operation onany of a plurality ofcircuits of diflerent voltage, said motor including a correspondingplurality of field coils, said coils having one electrically commonterminal means, each of said coils having a distinct companion terminal,all of said terminals being accessible at the exterior of the casing,and means for selectively plugging in from a source of current supplybetween the electrically common terminal means and the selected distinctterminal for operation at the particular voltageavailable.

9. An electric shaver for use selectively on any of a plurality ofvoltages, said shaver comprising a handle casinghaving an electric motortherein including a plurality of field coils, terminals for therespective voltages at one end of the casing, said terminals being inpairs for the respective voltages, the terminals of one polarity beingelectrically connected together within the casing and those ofopposite-polarity being electrically distinct.

10. An electric shaver for use selectively on of terminals adaptedselectively to be engaged.

with any of the pairs of terminals in the casing.

11. An electric shaver for use selectively on any of a plurality ofvoltages, said shaver comprising a handle casing having an electricmotor therein including a. plurality of field coils, and terminals forthe respective field coils at the rear end of the casing, said terminalsbeing in pairs for the respective voltages, the terminals of onepolarity being electrically connected together within the shaving unitand those or opposite polarity being electrically distinct, incombination with an electric plug having a pair of terminals adaptedselectively to be engaged with any of the pairs of terminals in thecasing, said casing having a socket for accommodating said plug, andpresenting a window for exposing a corresponding part of the plug ineach of the selective settings thereof, said plug having voltagemarkings thereon exposed through said window. a Y

12. An electrically driven tool having a handle and an electric motorenclosed therein, and suitable. for operation on any of a plurality ofcircuits of different voltage, said motor includ- -ing a plurality offield coils connected in series,

terminal elements accessible from one end of the casing, includingindividual terminal elements respectively connected to the ends of oneand the same polarity of the various field coils, and further terminalelements respectively paired with said first terminal elements, andconnected electrically to the end of opposite polarity of the set ofseries connected coils.

13. The combination recited in'claim 12, in which the respectiveterminals are prongs and the respective terminal pairs are diametricallyopposed within an enclosing socket in the casing of regular polygonalform having one side for each prong.

14. A two-voltage electric shaver having a low voltage coil and a highvoltage coil, separate terminals for the respective coils accessiblefrom the wall of the casing, said two pairs of terminals beingdifferently spaced, each pair for cooperation only with a contact plugof corresponding dimensions, thereby to avoid the application of highvoltage to the low voltage coil and conversely.

15. An electric shaver comprising a casing, an operating motor thereinincluding one coil for high voltage operation and another coil for lowvoltage operation, the respective coils having terminals accessible atthe rear end of the casing, the pair of low voltage terminals beingspaced at a different interval from the pair of high voltage terminalsto avoid application of high voltage to the low voltage coil andconversely. v l

16. An electric shaver useful interchangeably on the conventional 110volt house circuit and on the 6 volt battery circuit of an automobile,said shaver including a casing, a pair of electric operating coilsincluding one for loii. voltage operation and the other for high voltage'operation, the high voltage coil having terminals at the rear end ofthe casing spaced at the conventional distance and adapted for coactionwith the end of a conventional electric cord set,' the terminals for thelow voltage coil being spaced from each other by; a distance other thanthat for the high voltage pair to preclude application of high voltagethereto, and adapted for use with a special cord set suitable for lowvoltages.

17. An electric shaver useful interchangeably on the conventional 110volt house circuit and on the 6 volt battery circuit of an automobile,said shaver including a casing, a pair of operating coilsincluding onefor the low voltage circuit and the other for the high voltage circuit,the high voltage circuit having terminals at the cord is precluded.

rear end of the casing spaced at the conventional distance and adaptedfor coaction with the end of a conventional electric cord set, theterminals for the low voltage coil being of di mensions difierent fromthat for the high voltage coil to preclude the application of highvoltage thereto, and adapted for use with a special cOI'd. set suitablefor low voltages 18. An electric shaver for use alternatively on theconventional 110 volt house circuit and the 6 volt battery circuit of anautomobile, comprising a casing, two pairs of terminals at one endthereof, one pair of said terminals being of conventional size andspacing and having a 110 volt operating coil in the casing connectedthereacross, the other pair of terminals being at lesser spacing and oflargerdimensions than those of the 110 volt coil, and having a 6 voltoperating coil in the casing connected thereacross, whereby error inconnection of the conventional 110 volt cord and the special 6 volt JOHNA. HANLEY.

